2017-07-27 CE

Hello,

I don't know why you sent me the attached letter dated "7-17-17 AD" (or why it was necessary to include the archaic "anno Domini" in the date) about your young-earth beliefs – or perhaps it was a joke by someone who dislikes both you and me.

The letter includes the sentence "The fact that the calculated age of the earth has increased by a factor or roughly 100 between 1900 and today [50 million to 4.5 billion] ... certainly suggests we clothe our current conclusions regarding time and the earth with humility."

Yes, this phenomenon is called "science." Hypotheses are _tested_ to _disprove_ them and then new information is used to refine the hypotheses. Science is a quest for the best currently-available description of reality, not a quest for immutable truths.

If this concept puzzles you, read "Science and Non-Science: An Epistemological Conflict."

< http://www.mekabay.com/opinion/science.pdf >

The letter also includes a comment on how a recent "...poll found that 36% of Americans doubt the old earth theory."

I wholeheartedly agree with what I presume is the only reasonable point of the sentence: the widespread failure of US educational systems to provide students with an adequate grasp of the methods and results of scientific enquiry is a scandalous blot on our country's reputation.

For further reading to help the misguided nitwits who have succumbed to this religiously-inspired nonsense about a young earth, you can refer to "Geologic Time" while it is still available on the National Park Service's Website: < https://www.nps.gov/subjects/geology/geotime.htm >. Be warned that since it presents rational analysis, the current administration is likely to order this Website shut down.

I am truly sorry for the deluded fools who persist in promulgating young-earth theory to anchor themselves in their misinterpretation of English translations of mistranslated Latin texts which are misinterpretations of Greek texts which are misinterpretations of the Hebrew Tanakh which is a compilation of varied transcriptions (devoid of vowels) of oral legends from itinerant goat-herds living in North Africa and in what we now call the Middle East over 6,000 years ago. Jewish scholars study the Talmud – debates spanning hundreds of years about various interpretations of the vowel-less texts – to this day; see

< http://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/talmud-101/ >. Sometimes there are dozens of contradictory interpretations of specific lines of text from the Tanakh.

When you do interact with young-earth creationists, see if you can help them break out their delusions through modern psychotherapy. I understand that cult members can be deprogrammed using a variety of methods < http://www.wikihow.com/Deprogram-a-Religious-Cult-Member >.

If, on the other hand, you truly feel (as opposed to "think") that the earth really is a few thousand years old, then your G-d has played tricks on us by creating fossils that can reliably be dated in hundreds of millions of years of age.

I would be fascinated by your explanation of how pairs of (e.g.,) Tyrannosaurus (~40 feet long, ~18,000 pounds), Apatosaurus (~70 feet long, ~40,000 pounds) and Triceratops (~30 feet long, ~11,000 pounds) and

pairs of all the estimated 1,000 species of dinosaurs < https://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dinosaurs/types.html > along with pairs of the [minimum of] 950,000 species of insects were successfully carried around on a hand-built wooden boat 450 × 75 × 45 feet 7,000 years ago. Out of curiosity, what did the carnivorous megafauna eat while they were floating about on the ark with all those pairs of yummy smaller animals?

You might enjoy the famous dramatic rendition of Noah's interactions with the Lord at

< https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zyc1315KawQ > by the well-known serial rapist, Bill Cosby.

I also strongly recommend that you merge your organization with the many like-minded rejecters of reality who populate the flat-earth organizations. I understand that the next Flat-Earth International Conference takes place on November 9, 2017 < http://fe2017.com/ >. I am sure that you will find many kindred brain- damaged spirits there and have loads of fun. If you and your new friends get bored, you can amuse yourselves analyzing the scientific insights from the respected works of Dr Seuss.

Best wishes, Mich

M. E. Kabay, PhD, CISSP-ISSMP | W: http://www.mekabay.com/

=>o ASCII ribbon campaign against HTML e-mail o<=

* * *